Match Preview - Ards v Glentoran

Thu, 09/08/2018 - 23:03

Saturday 11th August 2018, Kick Off 3pm

On Saturday we stay in County Down with a visit to Bangor for our first away match of the season.

Last season we had a very uneven run of results against Ards, winning both away games but losing twice at the Oval. On our last visit to Bangor we had a comfortable 4-1 win, including two penalties from Dylan Davidson. We'll be looking for a win this Saturday to kickstart the season after last week's injury time home defeat.

Ronnie McFall said after training on Thursday night: “I was very disappointed with the defeat last Saturday. We were well organised and held our shape well but we lost concentration on the left side for the first goal and should have coped much better once the ball went in the middle for their winner. The central defenders didn’t deserve that as they were very solid and didn’t look in trouble throughout the match.

Conor Pepper was a real asset last week. He’s a quality player, a real organiser in midfield, a good talker and provides the sort of leadership I think the team has lacked for a long time. He also reads the game very well and has the ability to see danger early and quickly cut it out. As Conor gets a few games under his belt I think he’ll be a very important player for us.

For Saturday Lee Chapman will be available now his clearance has come through the IFA. He did very well for the U20s on Wednesday night so he’ll definitely come into the squad. Young Paul O’Neill is available this week so he’ll also come into the frame. Robbie McDaid is touch and go. He’s probably ready but he’s going to be a big player for us this season so I don’t want to risk him if there’s a chance his hamstring could get aggravated. We’ll make the decision nearer the time.”